A Story of a Timeworn Photo
by lalalastories
Summary: "What's that in your hand, little Amber?" she asked as she spotted the photo. "I was looking at some of your albums and I found this." Amber answered as she showed her the picture. Carly's eyes widened at the sight. It's been such a long time since she saw their faces. She slowly took the photo and just stared at it. "Mommy?" Amber asked, "Who are they?"


******A/N: Yeah.. The writing style might not be that good, but I'm only 14! I'm still working on it! :) So yeah, I hope you like this and make sure to leave a review and tell me what you think.. Thank you!**

******Disclaimer: I do not own anything.**

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_**A Story of a Timeworn Photo**_

A little girl sat on the corner of her room with a pile of dusty albums on her side, her ginger hair shining in the moonlight emitting an orange color. She scrolled through the old pictures of her mother and father together with some friends and family. She looked through the other albums until she reached the last one. The album was old and a bit rugged, but contained photos that seem to be in good shape. The photos were of her mother in her teenage years. The sides of the photos were yellowing and some were a bit torn.

Most of the photos contained her mother and 2 strangers; a beautiful blonde with piercing blue eyes and a good-looking brunette boy with hazel irises. Some of the photos, her mother was with her brother and another boy who was quite plump. The photos went from when they were really young to when they started to go their separate ways. Her eyes landed in one in particular; the one with the blonde girl and the brunette boy. The young girl turned into a stunning lady wearing a white elegant gown while the boy turned into this young man with a body built handsomely dressed in a black tuxedo. It was a wedding picture. The two were standing closely beside each other holding each other's hands while smiling widely at the camera.

It made the child wonder why there were so many pictures of them and yet she knew nothing about them nor have she met them yet. Taking the picture out, she stood up and headed towards her mother's room. She knocked on the door several times and waited a few seconds until her mother opened the door. Carly stared at her daughter in confusion as she motioned her to enter.

"What's that in your hand, little Amber?" she asked as she spotted the photo.

"I was looking at some of your albums and I found this." Amber answered as she showed her the picture. Carly's eyes widened at the sight. It's been such a long time since she saw their faces. She slowly took the photo and just stared at it.

"Mommy?" Amber asked, "Who are they?"

Carly looked down at her and said, "These two were my best friends; Sam and Freddie. They were a couple. They were deeply in love and were madly into each other. No matter how many fights they had, they were so strong. It was amazing."

"Then how come I've never met them? I met Uncle Gibby a lot of times, but not them." The kid said, obviously flustered.

She smiled sadly at her daughter and sat on the bed, the photo still in her hand. She patted the space signaling Amber to sit beside her. "Well, you see, they're no longer here."

"What do you mean?"

"They're gone. They're now living somewhere up there in a wonderful palace with God."

"Why? What happened?" Amber asked, curiosity taking over her.

Carly brought Amber to her lap, "It started on their wedding day."

_ Sam was just getting ready for her wedding when Carly came into the room. She turned to look at her as Carly gasped. Sam wore her hair up in a gorgeous bun with some hairs out in the front with her bangs. Her makeup seemed so natural, making her royal blue eyes pop out even more._

"_Sam! You look so beautiful! Freddie will not be able to take his eyes off of you." Carly squealed out as a happy tear threatened to fall._

"_I feel like a daffodil. And my hair's a bit too tight."_ _Sam told her faking her annoyance, but couldn't hold back her smile._

"_I'm so happy for you! I told you, you were meant for each other." Carly told her happily. Sam grinned widely and hugged her best friend tightly. The embrace broke as Carly was pulled away from Sam._

_Sam looked at the person who caused it; she had the same blonde hair as Sam but it was fading to grey. She smiled as she realized who it was, "Mom!" she threw herself at the older lady. _

"_I thought you'd never show up!" Sam said jokingly as she broke away, "Thanks Mom."_

"_I'm happy for you kid. You finally found the one for you while I'm still looking!" Pam smiled at her genuinely. The three girls laughed, enjoying the moment while it lasted. The wedding went on like that. Everyone smiling and laughing, not a single frown in sight. _

_At last, Sam had to put on her wedding dress. The garment was long, elegant and pure white, it was simply beautiful. It fit her body perfectly, hugging every curve. _

_She started to walk down the isle with Spencer, who volunteered to be the "substitute Dad". She looked at Spencer and mouthed a "thank you" as they reached Freddie at the end. Freddie took Sam's hand in his and went in front of the preacher. The chaplain said a couple of verses before the two said their vows. _

"_Groom, do you take this woman to be your wedded wife? Do you promise to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her in sickness and in health, remaining faithful to her as long as you both shall live?" asked the chaplain._

"_I do." Freddie responded proudly._

"_Bride, do you take this man to be your wedded husband? Do you promise to love him, comfort him, honor and keep him in sickness and in health, remaining faithful to him as long as you both shall live?"_

"_I do, with all my heart." Sam answered._

"_Then by the power invested in me, I now pronounce you __husband and wife__. You may kiss the bride."_

_Their lips crashed into each other, passionately yet gently. It was nothing like their previous kisses, this was more felt, fervent, loving; it was the best one yet. As they kissed, the cheers of everyone seemed to be blocked out. Freddie pulled Sam closer, deepening the kiss. They pulled away to catch their breath, looking into each other's eyes, both bliss and affection patent; everyone still cheering for them. Smiling widely, they walked down the isle hand in hand while people threw flower petals._

_They proceeded to their cars and drove to the five star hotel where the reception was being held. As soon as they headed for the grand ballroom at the top floor, they were greeted by cameras and congratulation speeches. The newly wed was assigned to sit in the center of the room to hear the speeches of close friends and family._

"_And.." Carly paused to wipe the tear merely falling from her eye, "I know that the both of you will last, you might have some fights from time to time, but I believe you'll never separate. Because that's what keeps you both together, it makes your relationship a whole lot stronger. And to all those who didn't believe me when I said they'd end up together, who's wrong now?" the audience laughed as they clapped for her, "Congratulations to both of my best friends! I love you both!" she ended her speech as she raised the glass of wine in her hand._

_ Several more heartfelt speeches were given before they proceeded with the main events. A few happy tears were shed, gifts were scattered on the table, and a majority of the people had gone home probably drunk. And that's how the night ended. Both Freddie and Sam spent the night together at the hotel and decided they'd go to their new home the next day._

"_Sam," Freddie said pulling Sam closer to him, "I love you.."_

"_I love you, too." Sam replied as she placed a quick kiss on his lips._

* * *

_It was two days after the wedding when Carly was walking down the stairs in her pajamas at two in the afternoon. She went straight to the kitchen to make a late lunch for herself, oblivious to the newspaper lying on the countertop. She took out a pack of bacon and a slice of pizza out of the fridge together with some orange juice. As soon as she sat, she noticed the newspaper and picked it up. The headline immediately caught her attention, __**"A Newly Wed Dies in a Car Crash"**__. _

_Carly read out loud the first two sentences, __**"On their way home, a newly wed of only two days dies tragically in a car crash. The car that they were driving in was said to be hit by a truck." **_

_ She put down the newspaper immediately and felt a shooting pain in her heart. Carly felt something wrong; something __**extremely**__ wrong. Her phone rang a few seconds later._

"_Hello? This is Carly." She said, not bothering to look at the caller I.D._

"_Carly! You've gotta come down to Troubled Waters, immediately!" Spencer commanded; his voice clearly in panic and distress._

"_Spencer? Why? What's wrong?" Carly asked, not sure if she wanted to know the answer herself._

_There was a silence of a few seconds and heavy sigh, "Its Sam and Freddie."_

_Carly hung up instantly. She wore her boots hastily, grabbed her coat and ran outside the door, not caring whether she was just in her pajamas. Carly drove her car for what seemed like forever, and at last she reached the hospital. She ran to front desk and asked where the room of Sam and Freddie was. Carly darted through the maze-like hospital and finally she saw Spencer. _

"_Spencer?" Carly called out to the man sitting down. _

_The man looked up from his hands, his bloodshot eyes meeting Carly's brown ones. _

"_Spencer?" Carly called out again, her voice cracking, "What happened?"_

_Spencer ambled towards his sister and shook his head, "They're gone, Carly." He informed her as he brought her into a tight embrace._

"_They're gone?" Carly repeated, her tears rolling down, "But why? Why them?"_

_Spencer felt his heart tighten even more as his tears continued to cascade down his face. Rubbing the back of his sister, he answered, "I don't know, Carly... I don't know..." _

"And that's how they died." Carly finished her story as she wiped the lone tear off of her face.

"Did they ever catch the truck driver?" Amber questioned her.

"They did. It turned out that the breaks of his truck were broken, so it wasn't really his fault." Carly responded.

Amber hugged her mother softly before she queried, "But why them?"

Carly smiled forlornly at her daughter and replied, "I don't know, Amber. I don't know..."

* * *

"_**Tis a sigh that is wafted across the troubled wave,  
Tis a wail that is heard upon the shore  
Tis a dirge that is murmured around the lowly grave  
Oh hard times come again no more."**_

_**-Hard Times Come Again No More, Stephen Foster, 1854**_


End file.
